donate

Goodwill Omaha is proud to participate in the first Washington County Gives! a 24-hour charitable challenge organized by the Blair Area Chamber of Commerce and Blair Area Community Foundation. The online giving event will take place on November 28 starting at midnight.

All funds raised by Goodwill support our Work Experience program in Blair. Goodwill’s Work Experience program provides students in special education services an opportunity to gain exposure to a work situation in a supportive environment. By participating in Work Experience, students can take the first step in making the transition from a school setting to the world of work.

The Work Experience program at Goodwill’s retail store in Blair allows students with disabilities the opportunity to experience aspects of employment. From following a supervisor’s instructions to staying on task, students are gaining valuable skills to assist in the transition from the classroom to employment.

Earlier this month, the Blair Work Experience staff hosted an Open House to invite student’s families, teachers and community members to see what the students have been learning this semester. Blair Work Experience Trainer, Jenny organized an engaging night for both students and guests that included student-led store tours, face painting and craft tables. Students demonstrated the skills they’ve learned through the Work Experience program and guests enjoyed seeing the students in action.

Your support will allow Goodwill to continue to provide these opportunities for students in Washington County. Help us continue to change lives and strengthen our community by giving to Goodwill’s Work Experience program in Blair during Washington County Gives!

Getting organized is one thing, but staying organized is quite another! Here are three of the biggest mistakes I see people making as they organize any space, whether it is a closet, kitchen, laundry room, garage or bedroom.

NO STRATEGY: Approaching a project with a “hurry up, clean it up” mentality, you are not thinking through the systems needed to keep the space running smoothly. You can “clean up” a laundry room by just throwing everything in cabinets to get it off the floor, and it looks better. But to keep it organized and be able to find what you need, you must think through who is using the space and what functions are happening there. A laundry room needs to have clothes put through cycles of sorting, pre-treating, washing, drying, folding and ironing. You may need to manage recycling or pet care duties in this space as well. Set up zones for each function, and think through the tasks required to maintain each zone.

NO OWNERSHIP: Even if you’ve identified the maintenance tasks, they still may not get done if you don’t know who is supposed to do them. We often hear, “I thought you were going to do that!” and “No, I thought you were supposed to do it.” When there isn’t clarity on ownership, everyone thinks someone else is going to do it, and the task simply doesn’t get done.

NO OUTBOX: Your office desk and your email apps have inboxes and outboxes. Does your house have an outbox? In my house, we call it a Donation Station. A good Donation Station is located in a closet, a spot in the garage or an out-of-the-way corner — whatever works for you and your family so you can set aside items you’ve decided you no longer need. The purpose is to have a place to corral all of those decisions as soon as you make them, giving them less chance of getting mixed back into your stuff again. Keep some containers you don’t mind giving away there, like paper grocery or shopping bags or boxes. When the containers are full, put them in your car for your next trip to Goodwill®!

Establishing habits is key to maintaining your organized spaces. Systems and routines — like keeping the laundry, dishes, and cooking operations going on a daily basis — are the foundation of home organization. Create a strategy for having solid morning and evening routines each day and other specific jobs done weekly to give you the long-term results you want from your efforts!

Finally, don’t forget to revisit the systems you’ve created. Few things are perfect the first time. Most systems and spaces need a little tweaking here and there, particularly because life goes on and things do change. When your life changes, your systems must change with it. When that happens, it’s a great time to donate to Goodwill.

Kids growing up and leaving home, changing careers, moving to another house, divorces, breakups or weddings — all of these life changes mean new stuff, new priorities and new perspectives. When your old stuff no longer reflects your life, donating it to Goodwill means you are helping someone in your community receive services and opportunities like job training, job placement, financial literacy classes or résumé writing assistance so they can build a lifelong connection to work.

Thrift stores always have such a neat array of different kitchen appliances from crock pots to cotton candy makers. A favorite appliance of mine is a Panini press that can grill almost anything you could imagine. While shopping at the Benson Park store I found an All-League Sliders cooker that caught my eye. Sliders are hamburgers that have the same great flavor but are shrunk down to a quarter of the size.

This Sliders cooker is only $4.99 (retails for $45 on Amazon) and can be used for summer cook outs with family and friends.